Intellectually Dishonest
Though his story is sentimental and heart felt, Michael Brush is missing the boat with his article entitled: The Most Overpaid CEO's in America.
Yes, there are people that are making minimum wage in this country that are struggling to make ends meet. Yes, there are CEOs in this country that are making a lot of money.
But how many people do those CEOs (and the company's they herald) employee?
They carry a large burden. Ted Kelly is President (CEO?) of Liberty Mutual. The livelihoods of 40,000+ employees rest on him. If he makes a bad business move and the company loses large amounts of money, all of those employees may lose their jobs. Where would they be then?
The people that are minimum wage earners doing low skill jobs (as is the woman in Brush's story) answer to no one but themselves. They don't have the pressure of supporting anyone other than those in their direct family / household. Not to say those pressures aren't great ... but is it really on the same scale as those that support thousands if not millions of people?
Why do people get upset when military bases close down in their area? It's not just about the jobs. Most of the jobs are government / civilian contractor. But there are incidentals as well ... large businesses effect the economy of every community they are in. When large businesses move, so do thousands of jobs. With those thousands of jobs gone, people are gone. No more Mom and Pop sandwich shop on the corner, because there is no one to eat at it.
All of that rests on a CEO's head. Time Warner (the first example Brush gives) CEO Richard Parsons ... if he makes a bad decision and Time Warner has to scale back ... people all over the country will be effected. Let's say they cut advertising budget first (it's always first), the Media buyers at Time Warner get laid off, the CMO gets laid off, the Ad firm with the account has to let go of the services staff, they have less print jobs for the printer, they have to let go of their night shift ... it's a ripple effect.
He talks about Dell like they are going out of business. "Trouble computer maker." HARDLY. Dell just made a big deal with Wal-Mart that's likely to make them both a lot of money and allow them to open more stores, and hire more people. That is a good thing. More jobs, more people working, higher GDP, better economy.
One woman on minimum wage at a clothing store does not have the same impact on the economy. It's just the facts. That is why CEOs make more. Even the smallest decision can have disastrous effects on large groups of people.
And if Dell is having any trouble, it's due (as the writer acknowledges) to increased competition in the low budget PC market from HP. This is all a good thing for consumers. And if Dell's shares fall, the CEO suffers. The author lists the CEO's stocks as part of his income, and yes they are ... but its all a risk. If the company does poorly and the stock plummets, so does the CEOs worth, right along with the company's. His job and his savings plan are both at risk as they are in the same basket.
And PS -- typically, CEO's are have entrepreneurial spirits. They work hard. They work long days. They put in a lot of time at the office. They sacrifice. They have continued their education. Not to say Susie in the retail shop won't do or isn't of the same character as a CEO ... but to compare Susie in the retail shop to CEO of big business is intellectually dishonest.
Yes, there are people that are making minimum wage in this country that are struggling to make ends meet. Yes, there are CEOs in this country that are making a lot of money.
But how many people do those CEOs (and the company's they herald) employee?
They carry a large burden. Ted Kelly is President (CEO?) of Liberty Mutual. The livelihoods of 40,000+ employees rest on him. If he makes a bad business move and the company loses large amounts of money, all of those employees may lose their jobs. Where would they be then?
The people that are minimum wage earners doing low skill jobs (as is the woman in Brush's story) answer to no one but themselves. They don't have the pressure of supporting anyone other than those in their direct family / household. Not to say those pressures aren't great ... but is it really on the same scale as those that support thousands if not millions of people?
Why do people get upset when military bases close down in their area? It's not just about the jobs. Most of the jobs are government / civilian contractor. But there are incidentals as well ... large businesses effect the economy of every community they are in. When large businesses move, so do thousands of jobs. With those thousands of jobs gone, people are gone. No more Mom and Pop sandwich shop on the corner, because there is no one to eat at it.
All of that rests on a CEO's head. Time Warner (the first example Brush gives) CEO Richard Parsons ... if he makes a bad decision and Time Warner has to scale back ... people all over the country will be effected. Let's say they cut advertising budget first (it's always first), the Media buyers at Time Warner get laid off, the CMO gets laid off, the Ad firm with the account has to let go of the services staff, they have less print jobs for the printer, they have to let go of their night shift ... it's a ripple effect.
He talks about Dell like they are going out of business. "Trouble computer maker." HARDLY. Dell just made a big deal with Wal-Mart that's likely to make them both a lot of money and allow them to open more stores, and hire more people. That is a good thing. More jobs, more people working, higher GDP, better economy.
One woman on minimum wage at a clothing store does not have the same impact on the economy. It's just the facts. That is why CEOs make more. Even the smallest decision can have disastrous effects on large groups of people.
And if Dell is having any trouble, it's due (as the writer acknowledges) to increased competition in the low budget PC market from HP. This is all a good thing for consumers. And if Dell's shares fall, the CEO suffers. The author lists the CEO's stocks as part of his income, and yes they are ... but its all a risk. If the company does poorly and the stock plummets, so does the CEOs worth, right along with the company's. His job and his savings plan are both at risk as they are in the same basket.
And PS -- typically, CEO's are have entrepreneurial spirits. They work hard. They work long days. They put in a lot of time at the office. They sacrifice. They have continued their education. Not to say Susie in the retail shop won't do or isn't of the same character as a CEO ... but to compare Susie in the retail shop to CEO of big business is intellectually dishonest.
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